


The Baker's Daughter

by aymanderz



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-02-13
Updated: 2013-02-19
Packaged: 2017-11-29 04:33:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/682819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aymanderz/pseuds/aymanderz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katniss Everdeen, the baker's daughter, and Peeta Mellark, a boy from the seam, form an unthinkable bond. How will they handle the disapproval from their loved ones without losing each other?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just Friends

**Author's Note:**

> I posted this on ffnet a while back and never actually went on to do a second chapter because ffnet frustrated me so much. Now that I can post updates on here, it will be easier for me to complete the story. All I can say is be patient with this story. Writing isn't my number one skill so it takes me a while to write a chapter and feel pleased with it. Thanks for listening and enjoy!
> 
> I want to thank my good friend Jessa (ffnet: misshoneywell) for helping me out with this first chapter.
> 
> Note about the characters: Even though they have swapped places, Peeta still has blonde hair/light skin and Katniss still has dark hair/dark skin.

I watch from our bed as she braids her hair in the small, cracked mirror across the room.

 _Our bed_.

She doesn't live here, but it feels as if she does. A majority of her clothes have made their way into my tiny closet, and she sleeps here almost every night.

She notices me staring at her reflection and her eyes meet mine in the mirror.

"What?" Her voice is a bit uneasy as she finishes off the end of the braid with a hairband. I can tell she feels self-conscious with me looking at her.

“Nothing," I reply, looking down at my fingers which are now brushing through the knots in Buttercups fur.

Katniss is from the Merchant section of town, though she doesn’t act like it. Her father owns the only bakery in District 12, and yet she dresses like she’s from the Seam. She only curls her hair and wears Capitol sent dresses when she's around her family, the people who don't approve of her association with me. They're humiliated that she's with a Seam boy, and I don't blame them. I don't have anything to offer Katniss other than the deer I haul from the woods, and the love I give her at night, but still—she stays with me.

You could call me a lucky guy.

“Peeta,” Katniss is now at my side of the bed, snapping her fingers in my face to get my attention. Buttercup hisses at her defensively.

Buttercup has never been a big fan of Katniss. The first time they met, she accidentally stepped on his tail. He's been leaving little presents around the house to show his disapproval of our relationship ever since. It seems like everyone is trying to tear us apart, even my mangy old cat.

Katniss looks down and scowls at the little lump of orange in my lap, "shut up fur ball.” I laugh at their little exchange. Buttercup jumps off my lap and hisses again before leaving the room.

Katniss takes Buttercup’s place on my lap and I let out a tired groan when she sits right on my morning wood. Her arms snake loosely around my neck as she nudges me forward, "Peeta, come on. We have to go to the bakery in an hour and I don't want to be late. This is important."

Her eyes are filled with urgency, fear, and ultimately sadness.

She had been trying to get her parents to like me ever since we met by the pond in the meadow, when she calmly informed me that she was trying to drown herself.

I hadn’t known her at the time; I only recognized her from school. But the second I laid eyes on this girl in the water, this beautiful, delicate girl with bruises all over her arms, I knew that I couldn't let her go. I had this immediate and overwhelming urge to protect her, a part of me had ignored the practical voice from within that warned not to get involved with this Merchant girl.

When I finally convinced her to come out of the water, she collapsed in my arms, sobbing into my shirt incoherently and clutching at my shoulders.

After all her tears had subsided and her body was no longer shaking, she was limp and exhausted. _If I could lift a 100 pound deer then I could lift this girl,_ I thought as I picked her up in my arms and carried her to the nearest oak tree. I slid my back down the tree, trying not to drop her. My butt made it to the ground without waking her; she must have gone days without sleep.

I wasn't sure what to do. What if this girl woke up and didn't remember what had happened? What if she ran to her Merchant parents and accused me of hurting her, when I hardly touched her bare skin? I pulled the fallen strap of her dress back over her shoulder and felt her stir in my arms.

 _"No, no, no, no,"_ she started to whisper rapidly as her eyes winced.

She gripped tightly onto my shirt, pulling a bit of my chest hair and making me groan—not in pleasure, but in pain. For such a petite girl, she had a strong hand. I couldn’t help but think about what that hand would feel like on me, pushing down onto my chest, grabbing onto my hair, holding my-

Her heavy breathing pulled me out of the inappropriate gutter I was clearly falling into, “Who- where?" She stammered, her eyes wide and hands still shaking. I wasn't sure what to say without embarrassing her. I could tell she was strong, wasn't one for crying. But she did cry right in front of me, a stranger.

“You collapsed after I found you in the pond, and then you started having a nightmare. I thought that the only way to calm you was to hold you." It was blunt, somewhat a lie, but close enough to being true.

“So- I… thank you," she looked down at her hands still gripping onto my shirt and immediately pulled them away, brushing through her messy braid. This was awkward.

“My name is Katniss," she said quietly, reaching her hand out for a shake. I took it.

“Peeta."

"So, " she started with difficulty, still trying to catch her breath. "Where are you from?"

"The Seam.” I wasn’t afraid to admit it. The Seam wasn’t as bad as everyone made it out to be. Yes, there were some rougher characters that lived there, but the people were mostly nice and just trying to survive like everyone else in District 12.

"Oh," she looked down, wide eyed. She was still in my lap, sort of. When I told her I was from the Seam she backed up a bit and sat up straight with her legs in a kneeling position on my calf. It hurt, her knee digging into the little space between my real flesh and the prosthetic, but I didn't want to her leave. I liked her here.

“Well, Peeta,” she slid off my lap and stood up, shaking the dirt off her dress. I stood up a moment after and rubbed the back of head with my hand, trying to think up a conversation. I didn’t want her to leave, but I didn’t know how to make her stay.

“I guess this means we’re… we’re  friends,” she bit down on her lower lip, trying to hide her slight smile, which made my cheeks hot. I didn’t realize how beautiful this girl was until she smiled.

“Friends,” I offered my hand for another shake and she took it, her own face flushing.

 _Friends Peeta, just friends_ , I had to remind myself. There was so much I didn’t know about this girl, such as why I had stumbled across her at the pond in the first place.

But, in that moment, all I could focus on was the way her hand felt in mine.

“So, Peeta... do you like sunsets?” she looked up at the orange sky, which reflected onto her skin and made her glow. _Yes, I like sunsets. And this is the best one I’ve seen yet._

I knew then that I was a complete goner for the baker’s daughter.


	2. White Sundress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Mr. Everdeen is very out of character in this story, which you get a glimpse of while reading this chapter.

I make my way downstairs to the kitchen where Katniss is feeding Buttercup before we head over to her parents’ house for the day. She’s wearing a bright yellow dress that ends just above her knee and a pair of black heels.  _No stockings._

She’s never worn anything this revealing in front of her parents before.

“How are you gonna make it to the bakery in those?” I point to her heels, taking a moment to admire her bare legs.

“Peeta, it’s fine. I was just making sure they fit."

I know there's more to the story then just that, so I wait for her to continue.

"Plus my mother sent them to me, so I have to wear them."

I don’t want her to break a toe just to impress these people who supposedly love her, but don't accept her for who she is. 

She takes off her heels and slips her wrist through the loops of the straps, playfully kicking my good leg as she proceeds to get up from her chair.

“I’m walking to the bakery barefoot anyway.”

“What about the mud?”

“I guess I’ll have muddy feet then. Is that a problem Mellark?" she attemps a scowl, but her tough demeanor breaks when I shake my head and stifle a laugh into the palm of my hand.

"Nope, not at all."

"You need to stop worrying so much Peeta,"

She lifts up my arms and puts them around her, hugging my waist. 

I lean down to whisper in her ear, “Can’t help it.”

Instantaneously, her lips capture mine, suppressing our soft moans of need and desire to a quiet murmur against the other's lips. I trail my finger up the side of her arm, feeling the little hairs stand up as I pull away from her puckered lips and pepper kisses along her jaw. Her whimper echoes through the halls of our home and brings a new sense of heat to this warm summer day. I feel her hands release their grip and she pounds against my chest softly with her fists until I bring myself to stop kissing her neck.

“Maybe later Peeta.”

“Maybe,” I pull back to look at her and she gives me a sly wink. My beautiful Katniss, loves to watch me suffer.

She clears her throat.

"Well we better get going,"

I open the front door for her in true gentlemen fashion and give her butt a soft tap as we walk onto the front porch. A light pink rises in her cheeks as she pats down the wrinkles in her dress.

“By the way, I know you hate wearing that dress, but you look really beautiful.”

She turns back to me and rolls her eyes, grabbing my hand in hers as our fingers intertwine.

“Come on lover boy,”

I try to keep my eyes on the dirt road ahead, but the way her hips move make it impossible to even think about anything else.

* * *

 

We’re almost to the bakery when I look down and notice that Katniss’ feet are covered in mud. I don't know what else I was anticipating because whenever we were about to pass a mud puddle she deliberately jumped into it. The interior of her heels are an off white. I guess she’s only wearing them this one time, so it doesn't matter much if they are ruined. 

Before we reach the corner, she stops and holds onto my shoulder.

She rolls her eyes and mutters something under her breath as she slips her feet into her shoes.  
  
“Ready for the show?” She asks, steadying herself as the heel sinks into the grass.

 _No_ , almost slips, but I stop myself. I’m never ready for these visits, but I have to pretend for Katniss’ sake.

I nod solemnly and take her hand in mine again.

Just as expected, her mother is waving at us with a huge grin and her father is nowhere to be found. He’s probably inside thinking of reasons why we shouldn’t be together, reasons he’ll end up presenting right in the middle of tea.

When we get to the steps of the bakery, I trip over the first one. Good job Mellark. You've been here nearly five seconds and you're already screwing up.

Thankfully, Katniss catches my arm and steadies me before I make a complete fool of myself.

Mr. Everdeen walks out with a cigar in his mouth and a glass of wine.

He’s drinking. I can already tell this isn't going to be anything close to a good visit.

Katniss gives me a concerened look that asks me a million questions - _Are you okay? Did my father see you fall? Does your leg hurt? Are you nervous?_

I kiss her cheek for assurance that I’m fine.

Katniss’ father tugs her away from me and hugs her tightly.

Every time we come to visit he acts like he cares about her. He tries to persuade her that I’m not fit for her image. He just doesn’t want himself to be embarrassed. He could care less about Katniss.

He glares at me over her shoulder. A glare filled with hatred and jealousy.

I stole the one thing that put him in the ‘upper class’ crowd of District 12. Yes, he has the bakery and the money, but Katniss was the reason for his high status. Her beauty brought on many suitors for her father to con. All of them wanted her hand in marriage ever since she was 13, or so she told me. The only way to achieve that was to get permission from her father, which is a tradition; a tradition Katniss and I broke when she ran away from home. The only way the Justice Building will sign the marriage license is if Katniss’ father is there to witness it.  But until then she is just a girl, owned and ruled by her father’s decisions. If he didn’t have so much control over what could happen to her, I would rip his throat out. But if she stopped talking to him, he might sell her to a Merchant.

I give Katniss’ mother a quick hug before we walk up to the living room, which is on the second floor of the bakery.

Unsurprisingly, Katniss’ father goes back into his office and says he will be out in an hour or so for tea.

Mrs. Everdeen tells me to sit on the couch and invites Katniss in the kitchen to help her with the small snacks she’s prepared.

Now that I’m alone in the living room, I’m glad her father went back to his office.

As my eyes wonder around the living room, I notice a photo album underneath the end table. I don’t think they’ll mind if I take a peak.

I flip through a couple of pages, filled with wedding photos who I’m assuming are of Katniss’ relatives.

I come across a photo of Katniss in a short white dress.  The same dress she was wearing the first time we made love.

I was ripping out some overgrown weeds when she showed up at my house. It was the middle of June and the heat was so strong that Katniss’ father closed down the bakery for the day. Katniss told me she was free to do what she wanted, but I knew she snuck out. Her father must have been taking a nap.

“Hey,” she nearly whispered.

I looked up at her, squinting to block out the sunlight beaming down on me.

The white sundress she was wearing had splotches of dirt and the fallen hair from her braid was sticking to the side of her face.

“So, he let you out to play today?” I chuckled at my comment, which didn’t seem to amuse her.

I wiped my hands on my slacks and stood to pull her into a hug. But she had other plans.

She grabbed my arm and rushed me to the side of the house. I thought she was going to slap me for my pervious comment. I was wrong.

“Take me Peeta.” She spoke so softly I hardly even understood her at first.

“Take you where?”

She looked me dead in the eye with her arms crossed over her chest tightly.

“I want you to make love to me, right now.”

“Kat-“

“Please.”

I couldn’t deny her, but this was all so sudden. She had always been the guarded one. She had always been the one who wanted to wait.

She pushed my back against the side of the house and wrapped her arms loosely around my neck. I looked into her eyes for some kind of answer, but all I found there was love, desire, and a bit of pleading. I became speechless.

She leaned her chest against mine, hiding her face in the crook of my neck.

“Peeta?”

She rubbed her hand over the bulge that was more than evident through my tight slacks. I could feel a warm sensation building inside me. I tried to think clearly, but between Katniss’ pleading whispers that tickled the side of my neck and the way her hands felt, forming cohesive thoughts became out of the question.

“Okay, but I’ll finish if you keep doing that.”

Without another word, I scooped her into my arms and started to carry her down the unpaved path I knew so well. I decided to take Katniss to the small house down the street from mine. Half of the house was burned down in a fire three years ago, making it unlivable. The family moved to another home and never returned to repair it. How they could afford a brand new home, I'm not sure. The rumor around town was that the daughter married a merchant who moved the entire family to another district. I decided to use the abandoned house as a refuge where I could skin game and paint. I could have made love to Katniss where we were at the side of the house. No one would be around to see. But it didn't feel private enough.

I kicked open the poorly hinged door and lowered my arms to lay Katniss on the pile of hay furthest from the front. She had been kissing and biting my neck the entire walk over. She kissed my cheeks, my nose, my jaw, my neck, my shoulder. Her kisses flustered me and I could feel myself twitching uncomfortably in my pants.

She was growing impatient and pulled me forward, causing me to fall on top of her.

I hiked up her dress and smirked at the fact that she wasn’t wearing any underwear.

“You really planned this didn’t you?”

She bit her bottom lip and moved her hands up under my shirt, nodding slowly.

I unbuttoned my pants and pushed them down around my ankles as she spread her legs for me; still so impatient, but I loved it.

I loved watching her unfold beneath my touch as her need for me grew.

For the first time in our relationship, nothing could break us apart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't use a beta for this chapter because I wanted to see how I would do without one :)  
> Please let me know what you think either in comments or on tumblr. Thank you for reading!


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